Review of Halloween (2018) by Eric H — 18 Oct 2018

I have a lot of issues with the structure. Exposition and backstory is often a throwaway line or quick flashback. Character motivation is not all there. Close to being REALLY good; but just falling a little flat. Feels like some stuff got left on the cutting room floor that maybe shouldn't have. Very solid direction and cinematography though.

Spoilers ahead:

The movie brings up a couple times the fact that Laurie Strode turned into a paranoid, nutso, doomsday prepper and scarred her daughter; but they don't really show much of it or give it much weight. And the granddaughter felt pretty underutilized or not important to the story. It just felt like there was a missed opportunity to show how mental scars cross generations. At the climax when the 3 generations of women fight off Michael together... but because their relationships weren't explored very deeply, it wasn't as impactful as it could have been. I would have probably started the movie with a disheveled Laurie drilling her daughter and getting her taken away (remove the whole storyline with the british reporters).

Michael's doctor's obsession with "knowing the pleasure of killing" pretty much comes out of nowhere. In the beginning he seems indifferent to Michael - a mute mental patient of little interest. Then when he decides to board the bus to keep an eye on Michael, it doesn't come off as wanting to study him, just as trying to protect society by making sure he doesn't escape. Then he straight murders a police officer to save Michael. There's no rhyme to it.